


We Were Friends, Once

by MystiKitty



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Reaper screams a lot, helping Reaper get betterer, helping WIDOW get better oooohhh, nobody does that one :3, wow look how baaad I am at tags
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-08
Updated: 2017-04-13
Packaged: 2018-10-15 23:18:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10559382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MystiKitty/pseuds/MystiKitty
Summary: Since the Recall, the new recruits were excited to get out there and do their best to save the world. Even when Angela could tell that some of them were especially wary around Omnics, as though they were as seasoned as Ana and Jack. The latter would sometimes express distaste in the Recall, and Angela wondered herself if this illegal activity was worth it. She remembered him specifically mumbling "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."But that's what medics do. They fix what needs to be healed.(First work, god I'm bad with summaries and it'll probably change, lol)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This work takes place in the current Overwatch timeline, after the shorts that are out currently (4/7/17). This is also my first work, so go easy on me. Some ships may be very strange because they're fairly rare, but they'll be in the background of our Mercykill <3
> 
> First two chapters are a lot of talking but it won't always be like this c:

"You're sure that your arm is feeling better?"

Hana rolled her eyes, giving the older woman a grin. "I'm fine, _Mom_ ," she replied, fidgeting in her spot on the examination table. She sat in Angela's office, sporting a pair of shorts and a bright pink tank top, kicking her feet to and fro as the blonde studied Hana's left arm. Rather cheerful for someone that could have lost her arm if she'd been crushed by that building. "I told you, it stopped hurting when I got up this morning. Your nano-whatever stuff seriously works."

"I could have sworn it looked like it was bruising something awful..." Angela released Hana's arm delicately and stepped away, lifting a tablet off of her desk. She began typing away immediately, eyes focused intently on the pixels on the screen. There had been nanobiotics administered, but only on site during the mission... How many days had it been since then? The numbers on the screen were starting to twist, and she wasn't able to even recall how long it'd been even though she'd been on the mission herself. She didn't hear Hana's scoff, or notice the way she was being studied herself. Wading through thoughts was tricky, as she tried to glean how Hana had gotten to feeling better already. She jumped when Hana coughed to get her attention.

"Mercy, uhm... Are you feeling okay? You look really tired. Like, reeeaaally tired. More tired than I do after I do one of those 24-hour streams. Your hair's falling out of your ponytail and I can _totally_ see the dark circles under your eyes. It's not like you." Hana hopped off of the table, reaching out to delicately grasp Angela's forearm. "I think the doctor needs to get herself some rest." She let out a nervous laugh. "...You forgot that I've been helping Lucio work on his crossfade healing thing, huh?"

Angela had looked down at D.Va, trying her best to grasp to the words being spoken. Yes, she had been helping Lucio, and the healing properties of his technology was sure to have had part in repairing Hana's arm much faster. Mercy knew that. She'd typed it down on Hana's current medical record just two days prior. She faintly remembered re-reading it just moments ago... Why had she forgotten?

She realized Hana had gone silent, cool brown eyes boring into her own, waiting for a response. She searched her mind for anything that could pass as a reasonable answer, but it seemed that Hana had caught on as she raised her eyebrow at the medic. Mercy sighed, looking away and setting the tablet back down onto the desk as Hana released the gentle hold on her arm. "You're... over-analyzing a bruise, Doc." Silence. "...You're not sleeping, are you," Hana spoke quietly, her sentence sounding more like a statement than a question. When Angela merely looked over to her and shook her own head, Hana grunted. "Don't tell me you've got PTSD too... I thought you would be one of the only one of us not to have it," she tried for a joke, but it fell flat.

The atmosphere in the room remained still, until the older woman chuckled softly, reaching up to pull the elastic out of her hair. "You can really tell?"

"Yes!" Hana seemed to leap at the opportunity to help Mercy, reaching up to smooth the blonde hairs sticking out from the doctor's bangs. "I think most of us can tell, but nobody wants to mention it, because..."

Angela knew that tone. "Because you're all afraid of telling me what's good for me, yes, yes, I know. Though I'm surprised Zarya or Symmetra haven't spoken sooner." They were always uncertain to argue with her on these kinds of matters, because she was their doctor, for Pete's sake, but those two would be blunt about things if they had to be. But now that Hana had latched onto what was wrong, she'd ask _why_ something was wrong. And the Angela wasn't sure she wanted to speak about it.

And yet, Hana persisted. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," Angela responded quickly, probably too quickly for the child to dismiss it. Hana squinted at her, and Angela felt the urge to fidget just like Hana had been doing a few minutes ago. She glanced around for something, _anything_ , to--

"You've been like this since Ana and Jack told us about--"

"I can assure you that it has nothing to do with h--... with that. The matter at hand. That isn't at hand right now," Angela spoke quickly, beginning to feel that she was suffocating. Hana hit the issue right on the nose, as she occasionally did out of nowhere. Kids these days. She glanced at the clock on her desk, feeling relieved at devising her means to escape. "It's lunchtime, and I'm fairly certain that you've got a lunch date with a specific cowboy."

Hana's cheeks flared up at that. "Uh-- Uhm--!" She seemed flustered on the spot, and Angela chuckled, the air being lifted once more.

"I will not go gossiping about your relationships. As I presume you will not go gossiping about what may or may not be wrong with your favorite doctor. Jack certainly would have some... _fatherly_ things to say about it, now wouldn't he?" Angela grinned as she spoke, and Hana fixed her with a glare, although it was more of a playful _Jeez, Mom, stay out of my business!_ look than anything.

"Yeah, yeah..." Hana's face relaxed, breaking into a light smile. "We're just worried about you, is all. All of us." She turned, waving her hand in the air. "As long as you talk to somebody about it, and don't tell _Dad_ on me, then whaaatever." The door slid open, and Hana left the room with a wave and a goodbye. Angela bid her farewell, and as soon as the door slid shut once more, the doctor sat upon her office chair with a deflated sigh.

_You could have told her. You could have talked to somebody about it... About him._

_No, no, don't you dare think about him!_

She rested her elbow on the table, and her chin in her palm as her thoughts drifted again. Not many days ago, Ana and Jack had revealed that they knew who the terrorist known as Reaper could be. That they knew who was under the mask. They'd both encountered him, and he'd tried to kill them both. _He tried to kill them, Angela. He's not who he once was._ Jack was wary about telling the team about Reaper's identity, but Ana had assured him that they deserved to know. He'd been a part of the family, back in the day.

_Back in the day? It's not even been ten years. When did you start sounding so old and tired?_

Angela had taken the information hard. She'd _known_ him. Known him so well. She imagined that she knew him better than anyone else did... But perhaps that was a mistake. Reaper was a murderer, an assassin, a terrorist... Understandably, when she'd excused herself from the room, no one argued with her. She'd returned to her quarters, and didn't sleep. She didn't think much on it, as though she was in shock, but she'd just laid awake nearly the whole night. Though, was that what she'd call it? Shock? Part of the whole ordeal hardly felt real. She'd kept herself busy the next day, just so she couldn't think about him.

But the next night, she got short amounts of sleep. She would have rather stayed awake all night again. Her dreams came to her in waves as dark as the tide at night; Everything felt bogged down, cold, and dark. She'd see him, the man who was supposed to be under the mask. She'd relive memories, being near him, talking to him, taking care of him. But she'd see the darker things, too. The building collapsing, his scream of pain, her own desperate sobbing, the--

She laid her head on her arms, on the edge of the table. The night of the explosion had been a blur, and she wasn't sure she remembered it correctly at all. She'd done her best to block it out, even. But the dreams... The nightmares brought back the pain she'd felt when she'd lost him, all over again. Sleep wasn't worth it, if this was how her life was to be. She regretted so much... but she'd never regret the time she spent with him, before everything went downhill.

_When he was still yours, and you were still his._

\---

_WHAM!_

"Angela!"

With a start, Mercy's head shot up as she woke from her surprise nap. She blinked the grogginess away in a matter of heartbeats, though everything felt even _more_ muddy now. She focused her bleary eyes on the door that had been forcibly slid open. "Y-Yes?"

It was Genji. He looked as though he'd just run from one corner of the facility to another, if he'd needed lungs that much anymore. But from what she could tell, he was physically jittery, and that would have to be the cause of his unnecessary panting. "76 told me not to alert you yet, but he is being unfair!" The cyborg moved into the room, reaching towards her as to take her hand. "You must come with us!"

"Us?" Angela blinked again, trying awfully hard to clear away that fog from her brain and eyes. She peered around Genji's shoulder and spotted Zenyatta, who waved delicately. "Ah, is someone hurt?" She stood immediately as the thought finally dawned on her. She caught eye of the clock, and saw that she'd only been asleep for an hour or so. No wonder she hadn't been woken until now.

"No. Well, someone's about to be, if we don't hurry!" Genji spoke with more urgency, grabbing Angela's hand. She was more or less dragged out of her office, her senses still dulled in the slightest from her short sleep. Zenyatta followed along behind her at a more relaxed pace than Genji seemed to accept. The cyborg was picking up his strides rather quickly, and once they were out of the medical ward Angela felt that she'd soon be _literally_ dragged along unless she started sprinting.

A metallic _a-hem_ behind them caused him to slow his pace though, and she was thankful for it. "Genji, it would be best that you don't get the poor doctor's health in worse shape over your excitement. I fear that we should have let her have her well-deserved rest, even if it was spent hunched over on a desk."

Genji looked back at the two, their pace now slowed to a brisk walk, and he seemed to take note of Mercy's hair and face. He tilted his head down, to show his remorse through his faceplate. "I am sorry, Angela. I should have explained, first. This is rather unsettling."

"Unsettling? What is?" she asked, more worry growing in her chest. She took note of Genji's scuffs here and there on his metal plating, and remembered that they'd been on a mission earlier today. Had they just gotten back? Shouldn't they be going over mission de-briefing?

"Perhaps it would be best if I tell her. You'll overheat if you get too much more worked up about it," Zenyatta stated, trying to keep the air calm. Angela looked between the two, irritation growing as they continued to leave her out of whatever this was. She ground her teeth as the trio turned a corner, and she pulled her hand out of Genji's grasp.

"Tell me _what_?!" she all but shouted, stopping in her tracks. Zenyatta stopped immediately, but Genji had taken a few steps ahead before he stopped as well, and he turned to face her. There seemed to be another heartbeat of silent communication between the two, but just as she was about to snap again, Genji sighed.

"On our mission, we were able to... You know how we were taking down one of the small Talon bases? One of the undercover ones?" he asked, finally relenting. Angela felt herself relax as she thought on it.

"Yes, I do remember that awfully dangerous-sounding mission plan, what with Zenyatta insisting on going." She nodded, thinking to herself and urging him to continue.

There was another pause, and she could see now that Genji was reluctant to tell her whatever it was. Why had he stormed into her office, then?! He looked like he'd realized he was tripping over himself just to show her whatever he needed to show her, and that he hadn't thought about it entirely. As though there would be some sort of consequence for retrieving her _before_ she knew what was going on. That, or he had now realized what her reaction would be, and he was afraid. She was sure Zenyatta thought the same, as the monk remained silent. Genji wasn't looking towards her anymore.

"...Genji? Was someone injured? Don't tell me that someone... someone died," she spoke barely above a whisper, pleading with him that it wasn't the case.

The cyborg went rigid, then immediately looked at her and shook his head and hands. "No! No no no! I am sorry, I didn't mean to imply that! We are all okay, mostly. We, ah--"

"We have very important hostages."

The room seemed to go completely silent as the words left Zenyatta. Genji was frozen once again, and Angela slowly turned her head towards the Omnic. Zenyatta merely offered the tiniest nod, watching her expression change from thoughtfulness to realization. Genji stuttered something, but words were lost on the doctor as she turned tail and started in a full-on _sprint_ towards the holding cells.

"Master, please, you should not have said it quite like that..."

"You were taking too long, my student."

Mercy wasn't sure the last time she'd run like this. It had been a long time, at least. The holding cells were still a way off, but she had to get there _now_. If Zenyatta had been implying what she thought he was...

What would she find when she got there? Her lack of sleep and semi-emotional distress made it hard to imagine anything but _him_ , the way that he was when she'd been with him years ago, curled up in his embrace on one of those nights... She knew it was impossible, illogical, fanatical, and frankly quite stupid, but it kept her running. What would Jack do with him? What would the others decide his fate would be? Would he ask to see her?

_Will he ever want to see me again?_

The thought hit her like a wall, and she slowed her running. Her lungs were on fire, now, and she felt that she desperately needed water, and somewhere to sit. Not wanting to injure herself, she leaned against a wall right near the doorway she'd been seeking. She was panting rather hard, lungs desperate for oxygen, throat dry and burning, heart pounding in anxiety (and in overdrive), and _she ought to just plop down right here and take a catnap against the wall_. But the thought of him came to her mind again, and she let her breathing slow just a little more before standing again. She really needed rest, but she was where she wanted to be now, finally passing into the hallway with the holding cells.

" ** _I'LL KILL YOU, MORRISON! LET ME OUT OF HERE AND I--_** "

Angela held her breath as she caught sight of the area. Jack stood there in the hallway, his hand over his visor as though he were thinking to himself. Winston looked like he was just leaving alongside Symmetra, Roadhog, Zarya, and Reinhardt. She wondered why this group specifically had been through, but a screech interrupted her thoughts. It was the same voice that'd just called Jack's name, and it sounded just as distorted and gravelly. It didn't sound pained, rather, it sounded like rage, and... something underneath that she could not place.

Jack caught sight of her, and he immediately turned to talk to her, but another scream came from in the cell, and a loud _thump_.

" ** _JUST YOU WAIT, YOU SON OF A BITCH! I'LL COME FOR YOU, AND EVERYONE ELSE IN THIS DAMN ORGANIZATION!_** "

 _Reaper._ Mercy's feet started going on their own, making a beeline for the cell's door. "He's--"

"Angela." Firm hands grasped her arms, and she found that she was looking at Jack's visor. The red of it glinted dangerously as he spoke. Right, Jack was there, too. He'd probably helped put Reaper in there. "Listen to me. Turn around and go back to your quarters. There's nothing for you to see here."

She stared up at where she presumed 76's eyes were, and for several tense heartbeats she tried to process what she wanted to say. She tried to grasp at the words as her heart tugged and pained for the man behind the door, even if he was so foreign now. She couldn't help it. But when that turned into several seconds, and all she could offer was a blank stare, his shoulders sagged and he sighed. "Angela... I knew it was a mistake to tell you who he used to be. Ana told me that you'd find out eventually, and she was right I'm sure... But he's not Reyes, Angela. He's not Gabe. He's something else. He's a monster now."

All the while, the man in question could be heard growling and shuffling around in the cell, presumably trying to burst out of whatever constraints they put him in. Angela was digesting Jack's words, and after a particularly loud thump, her eyes drifted to the door again. "What are..." Her heart ached. It ached so badly, and she didn't know what to do about it. "What are you going to do with... with him?"

"We don't know, yet. Honestly, I'm not even sure how we were able to snag the two of them when they're the craftiest pair that Talon seems to possess," Jack spoke, as he threw a glance back at Reaper's cell door.

"Two? You brought back two?" Angela's words were hardly out of her mouth before he winced in realization; She didn't know the full details of how the mission had gone.

"Widowmaker is in our custody as well," he replied, following up with a sigh. His hands left her arms, and Mercy felt her heart begin to beat harder as she registered this new information. Two of the most deadly people she'd ever known were in this hallway, somehow confined by their weakened state of security. "Honestly, I didn't think we should bring them back. I know who they used to be, Angela, just as well as you do, but they really can't be the same people." Jack shook his head, looking at her fully again. "Talon's changed them."

 _I know that._ Cogs started turning in her head, though her fatigue was preventing her from figuring out what she'd ask next. "How did you capture _both_ of them?"

"I was able to distract Reaper," Genji's voice came from the end of the hallway, and Angela turned her head to see him and Zenyatta making their way towards her. "It was very strange, but the base we attacked was... weakened. And I believe that Reaper had something to do with it." Genji nodded towards Reaper's cell at that, and then glanced back at Zenyatta, who spoke up as well.

"It was understaffed, it seems, and once we arrived, it was as though someone had the same idea. Someone from the inside." The Omnic inclined his head towards the cell door as well, as Angela stared wide-eyed at the two. "An impressive amount of screaming and cursing could be heard from most anywhere in the building. It was not hard to find the former agents."

"Indeed. And..." Genji seemed to fidget slightly in his spot, as his body language was what he'd have to use instead of facial expressions, Angela noted. "There were... a lot of pieces of equipment that led us to believe this was a base used for... conditioning. It was surprising to us, too. We never would have guessed that, from the intel we'd gathered prior."

"How were you able to distract Reaper?" Angela asked, her voice handling his name delicately, as though she did not want to use the word.

Genji seemed pleased that she asked, as he crossed his arms and straightened his stance. "Once Reaper caught sight of me, he started cursing about how different I've become. How I'd been when I'd been under Blackwatch. And how I looked... better." He seemed to lose his confidence just a hair, as his shoulders sagged a little. "It was... very confusing. As though he was unable to place his feelings about me. Winston was able to knock him out afterwards, with his strange, ah," Genji searched for the correct words in English, "electric weapon."

"So he is unstable," Angela's words came out after a tense moment. "And he's been... under Talon conditioning." She'd been able to come to that conclusion, and for some God-forsaken reason, she felt her heart jump a little. What could that mean for his memories? For his actions and feelings?

The cyborg nodded. "I believe he is more angry that we caught him, than anything else." He couldn't help but chuckle. "Reyes did always hate to lose."

"He's not Reyes."

All eyes turned towards Soldier 76 once he spoke up. Angela searched his body language too. _Why's everyone able to hide their face but me?_ His shoulders were tense again, his hands balled up into fists, and he wasn't looking directly at any of them. "That... person," he seemed to have struggled finding an acceptable term, "is not Reyes. I don't know what you two are on about, but he is _not_ the man we all knew. He hasn't been for a long time, and it'd be best if you all kept that in mind when Winston asks us what we want to do with him. It'd be best if we just terminated both captives to end their misery."

Mercy's heart twisted in her chest at his words; Jack had known Gabriel for so long that he must have felt like he'd been the most betrayed from all that had happened. And he was right, too. Gabriel had taken part in the uprising. Gabriel had expressed his displeasure at being replaced in Overwatch. Gabriel had held her close after the more difficult missions, doing his best to soothe away her anxieties. Gabriel had stolen her heart.

"You're not to go into that cell until we decide what to do with him."

She blinked and looked up towards Jack's mask again as his words broke through. She scrambled for something to say. "I... I wasn't-- I didn't say--"

"You're thinking it, Angela." He grunted and stepped around the trio. "Now, I'm gonna go get lunch and stay as far away from him as I can," he grumbled as he headed out of the captivity wing. Genji tilted his head towards her once Jack had passed the corner, and Angela swore she could hear Zenyatta sigh faintly as he shook his head.

"I will not tell on you, if you choose to do so," the ninja's voice came quietly, and she imagined that he'd wink at her. Troublemaker. "Master and I could keep watch."

"I imagine Athena will not be as forgiving as Genji would like," Zenyatta stepped closer and placed his hand upon Angela's shoulder. "But I am bound to be his partner in crime. You would not have very long to speak with Reaper, and I can sense he is in great disarray, though we would be able to come to your aide if need be."

She thought about it, going in to speak with Reaper. Jack made it clear that he was awfully against any sort of interaction with the man. He was dangerous and heartless, according to his actions as of late. He'd killed many, and wanted all Overwatch agents dead under his feet. He operated like a ghost, phasing in and out of some strange apparition form. _But he could be under conditioning, just as Widowmaker was. Given time, he could develop different feelings. And considering what you did to him, he could be in so much pain if you didn't try to help him._

It was her fault, too, that he was like this. She'd only been trying to help, and yet he could be in a world of pain for the rest of eternity. _All because of me... But I've learned so much since then. My technology has advanced since that happened. If I could get a look, or better yet, a sample--_

"He may try to assault you." Zenyatta's soothing voice brought her back to earth once more, and she focused on his face. "He may say all sorts of nasty things, and he may very well try to charm you into releasing him."

"Do you think I'm some sort of--" Her voice died quickly as Zenyatta shook his head.

"No, but it is better to be safe than sorry, is it not? I would like Reaper to be well, as much as I imagine you do, but I must look out for your well-being first. Genji would dismember Reaper if something happened to you." The monk tilted his head towards Genji, who could only let out a nervous chuckle.

Angela looked between the two for a moment before a smile graced her lips. "I appreciate this, boys." She glanced back at the cell door, grin fading quickly. "You'll keep a close eye on me? And warn me if anyone draws near?"

"We will be more concerned about you, Angela," Genji replied, though he nodded. Zenyatta clapped his hands together, and the pair watched her as she stepped away from them to reach the door.

Her stomach began to stir, as though she was about to see Gabriel again, but also as though she was about to meet a dangerous man in a dark alley, alone. It was all rather confusing, and doubt began to plague her mind. _Caution be damned._ She lifted her hand to the number screen next to the door. There was a camera, there, that could show what might be going on inside the cell at all times. _Good._ Zenyatta and Genji stepped to either side of the door, doing their best to give encouraging looks. She hoped that's what they were trying to do, anyway.

Athena's voice came right away. " _Doctor Ziegler, this prisoner has been classified as extremely dangerous, and I have been forewarned that you might try to visit him._ " She winced, guessing that Winston had prevented anyone from entrance. " _However, your clearance allows you to head in. I have not been directed to alert Winston, but he and I do request that you remain cautious at all times. Do you wish to proceed?_ "

Oh, Angela certainly had considered that this was a stupid idea. A stupid idea that would only lead to breaking her heart once more. Instead of turning tail and fleeing, she inhaled, exhaled, and nodded. "Yes, Athena, I do."

" _You will be monitored for your safety. Go ahead, Doctor._ "

The door slid open, and with her heart pounding in her ears, she stepped into the small room. The door shut with a soft _click_ , and her eyes found their way to the dark mass at the other end of the room. She hadn't imagined her heart could beat faster than it already was. Her hand found its way up to cover her mouth, and the other balled into a fist over her chest.

He stood there, breathing heavily and partially hunched forward, but he was staring at her with that bone-white mask. His hands were confined together in a hard-light cuff, and had she been able to think, she'd guess that he could only walk so far towards her in the room with it on. But he wasn't moving. He was only breathing and staring.

" _ **You.**_ "

An animalistic growl rose in his throat, and he took a step forward.

" _ **Angela.**_ "


	2. Chapter 2

"Gabriel," the doctor's voice came in a shaken whisper. She had never _seen_ Reaper up close; She'd only heard about him time and time again. How his presence was chilling, how he would strike fear into a man's heart when in contact with this volatile being, how he had nothing but a black void where his heart might've once been.

The deep snarl resounded again from behind the mask, his breathing growing heavier. " **Don't call me that. That man's dead. And it's your fault. Been waiting years to finally get to _thank_ you for that.** "

Angela's eyes widened and she shook her head ever so slightly. "No... No, I-- You're alive. You're... You're here, in fr-ront of me." She spoke quietly, as though she still couldn't believe that she was in the same room as him. Her heartrate was still sounding in her ears. "You've been alive all of this time. All these years..."

He chuckled darkly at that, though his body language still suggested he was on the verge of going into a fit of rage again. " **It's hardly _living_ when I'm literally the Grim Reaper himself.** " His hands tightened into fists, relaxed, and tightened again. His gaze never left hers, though. " **I've been dying over and over every damn day, because of you.** "

"No, no..." She found herself shaking her head again. The memories were beginning to rear their nasty heads in the back of her mind. "No, Gabriel, you--"

" ** _Do NOT call me that!_** " He hissed and took two steps forward, getting closer to her even when he was still several feet away. " ** _You left him to DIE!_** "

"How could I have known what would happen to you?!" Mercy nearly shouted, both hands balling into fists on her chest. "How could I have known everything would fall?! That you and Ana and Jack--"

Reaper made some sort of noise between a growl and a grunt, stepping forward two more strides until some invisible force stopped him from getting any closer. He was maybe a yard away now. " ** _They lived too, but did YOUR research do this to them? You let them die, too, but of course I HAD to experience Hell._** " His statement ended shortly, as though he had more to say underneath the anger.

She felt her throat closing up when her eyes started to sting. He was so close, now, and he was so angry at her. "I tried to _save_ you, Reyes! I tried in all of my power to prevent all that happened!"

" **Why would you think that _you_ could do _anything_ with all that happened?** "

Angela's breathing hitched and she felt hot tears drip onto her shirt, but she felt cold as ice. She raised her voice and her hands shot out, grasping Reaper's shoulders. " _I didn't want to lose you too!_ All I've ever wanted to do was save people, but nothing mattered if I couldn't save _you_!"

He reacted as though she'd burned him; He hissed and ripped himself away from her grip. " ** _What a good job you did then, Doctor. I got turned into a walking pile of regrets, and for what?_** " His laugh was dry, as though his heart wasn't in it. " ** _You helped create a weapon for Talon to get its hands on, and you made everything worse. The world is even more of a disaster now. People coming back from the dead, Omnics still don't have rights..._** " He seemed to be rambling at that point. His voice quieted slightly as he spoke. " ** _Morrison came back unscathed, and everyone went running to him._** " He'd hissed Jack's name like it was a curse. " **You've been acting as if everything is fine, haven't you, Doctor? As if nothing happened, you're their backbone, aren't you?** "

She was shaking at this point, unable to tear her eyes away from that mask. He was right, wasn't he? He was right about everything. Gabriel had always been right.

" **You need them more than they need you.** " His voice had calmed in the slightest, but still hinted at something more dangerous beneath.

"I-I've..." Angela thought she'd have been stronger when she would get the chance to talk to him again. She thought she'd be able to march in, demand answers, and... _And then what?_ "They have been here for me, when I've been alone. I am their Valkyrie, and they are my family." She tried to take a calming breath. "But they have not been able to stop everything. The pain, the memories. I've been... I've been through Hell since you disappeared," she mustered, still speaking so quietly.

Reaper's laugh was louder that time, mocking her. He slunk closer to that invisible barrier, like a tiger eyeing his prey before the kill. " ** _You've been through Hell?_ You've been loved by everyone you know. You've been living, breathing, and experiencing life as though nothing went wrong. You've been--** "

"You _left_ me, Gabriel! You took off and disappeared, and you're acting like _I'm_ the one that broke your heart!" The fire began burning inside of her, emotions from years passed breaking free. "Even when Blackwatch disbanded, I stood by your side! I tried and tried to get you to let me in and _help_ you, Reyes! And you ran off to start a fight?! Get involved in God-knows-what?! I thought you _died_! We thought we had a funeral for you!" Her voice cracked as the snowball kept rolling, and she took a step closer, shaking more still. "I mourned you for _years_ , and thought I couldn't go on, because I **_loved_** you, Gabe! _YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH!_ " She didn't know when she'd rushed forward, or why, but her hand was suddenly flying against the side of Reaper's face. It collided with a hard _smack_ against the mask, and he did nothing but turned his head ever so slightly to the side. She could barely see through tears, but they cleared enough to register that the clacking on the floor was where Reaper's owlish mask had fallen.

The room's air went still, and neither party moved for several tense heartbeats. Only after Mercy let out a soft gasp did Reaper turn his head towards her once more, straightening his stance.

"Angela."

When he spoke her name, chills ran up her spine. He'd lost the edge, lost the anger. He'd _lost his mask_. All she could do was continue to stare at it, as though it was a safety barrier. _Protecting me from what?_

"Look at me, and see what you **_did_**." He spoke through his teeth as he leaned forward, ever so slightly. The frustrated breathing had seemed to subside in him, a cool anger settling in its place.

She dared to lift her eyes to his face, and though his hood kept much light from reaching him, she could see. She could see his gray skin, so much different than the color it'd used to have been. She could see his hair, barely, though she could tell it'd grown much longer and was unkempt, hiding closely under the hood. She could see the scars littering his face, and _there was a dark pulsating gash in his cheek_. It looked like the same mist he could turn into at will, and she could see his teeth in the blackness. The injury split the corner of his lower lip.

She finally risked glancing higher, into his eyes. They were no longer a deep, cool brown. The familiar eyes she'd grown to love were now replaced with dull red ones, the whites of his eyes bloodshot. He was staring back, expression guarded while she gaped at his new form.

"You _**destroyed**_ me. You and the rest of Overwatch." He leaned down again, voice growing colder still. " **I've been wanting their blood for a long time, Angela.** "

Before she really knew what she was doing, she reached a hand up, slowly, and she placed it delicately against his cheek. His skin was much cooler than it should have been, and she could feel the bumpy texture of his scars. "Gabriel..." Her voice cracked even in her low murmur. Her anger had vanished, and her heart pained once more. "I had never intended this for you."

Angela wasn't really sure what she'd been expecting. The atmosphere had gone stagnant once more, her tears had stopped flowing, and her shaking had calmed a bit. But it had an adverse effect on Reaper. His breathing quickened again and his face contorted from hostility to a much more vulnerable expression. But she wasn't able to place it before he snarled and twisted away from her, stepping back to retrieve his mask and replace it back where it belonged. His movements were jerky and defensive, but he looked as though his rage would build again soon.

" **Get the fuck away from me.** "

And so she did, calling for Athena to open the door.

\---

Once she stepped out into the hallway, she was immediately face-to-visor with a worried cyborg. "Are you alright? We heard shouting, and we saw what transpired," Genji spoke, gently setting his hand on her shoulder. He was worried. Understandably so.

But Angela stared at the ground for several seconds, her arms crossed as she sort of hugged herself, everything settling in. _Why would you think that you could do anything?_ Reaper had seemed so sure of the words he spat at her, as though he had been waiting a long time to unload his angst. He'd certainly had enough time to think about what he'd tell her. _Years of pain and nights alone. Just like you. Maybe you two really are perfect for each other._ She exhaled through her nose, still unaware of Genji's question or presence. He and Zenyatta shared a questioning look between themselves.

A warm, metallic arm wrapped around her and pulled her into Genji's side, soon joined by the other arm. "Angela, please," he mumbled softly, hugging her to his chest firmly. "You're alright. I am here."

Something about the way his hushed voice sounded caused her throat to burn once more, and she couldn't help but let out a tiny sob. "Genji..." Her voice caught, and she let herself rest her head against his neck. "Genji... He must hate me," she replied, voice barely a hoarse whisper. Her arms did not leave her own sides, but she felt somewhat safe in the cyborg's embrace. As though she could collapse right here, and he would be there to catch her. _He's so much different now, too._

His companion made himself aware in the situation, as well. "You are unwell, Doctor," Zenyatta hummed. "If it is alright, we would like to accompany you to your room, and perhaps may be of service to your distress."

 _He's right._ Even now, she felt herself leaning more heavily against Genji. "I... Yes. Please," she relented, suddenly feeling very exhausted. She wasn't sure she'd even be able to make it back to her quarters at that point. Did she want to? Would she even be able to rest?

As if he read her mind, Genji moved around her and slipped his arm under her knees, lifting her up and against his chest so as to carry her. It was as though she weighed nothing to him. Normally, she'd have protested and laughed, saying _"No, Genji, I can walk just fine."_ But right now, with her head resting against his shoulder, she could hear the gentle humming of his inner workings, and how his feet barely made any noise when they touched the floor. It was far more soothing that she'd ever imagined it would be. Without another word, the pair began to leave the captivity ward, Genji carrying their weakened medic gracefully. They met no-one else in the hallways leading away from that wing of the base, and Mercy could presume that the other agents were relaxing or having late lunch.

"He's not so bad," she said with a voice much calmer than it had been earlier. Neither of the pair responded immediately, and she imagined that they hadn't even heard her for the next minute or so. She'd even begun to lull into perhaps falling asleep, once Zenyatta replied.

"Most beings are not wholeheartedly evil, in this world. Your old... companion," he'd hesitated on the word, "has many inner demons he must wrestle with before he is able to bond with another human again. Notice that he did not outright refuse your past affections for him."

 _True... He used to say it back to me, even._ "Do you think he really despises me?" Angela spoke without thinking, the fog of sleep beginning to cloud her senses once more. Genji chuckled softly, the sound familiar though amplified from her ear's spot on him.

"He would have torn anybody else's arm off if they slapped him like that, Mercy."

"His hands were bound," she mumbled.

"He'd have found a way."

Silence followed, but it was not an uncomfortable one. Only sounds of cyborg breathing and the echoes of the hallways came to her ears for a few moments.

"...Genji? Zenny?"

"Yes?"

"Hmm?" The pair answered immediately, though delicately as though they'd spook her off with too much noise.

"You two are wonderful," she murmured as sleep began to pull her under. "Don't allow anyone to tell you otherwise."

There were bashful, quiet jumbles of thanks from both of them. Genji glanced to his left where Zenyatta walked beside him, and they shared a silent look of content. They were just about into the more active side of the base, where the living wing, mess hall, and recreational areas resided. Familiar sounds began to waft to the trio, signaling that they were nearing the warm atmosphere that they'd all really come to love. Angela could just barely hear someone speaking loudly down the hallway, and rushed footsteps. She was too far-gone, though, as the Omnic quickly took farther strides than Genji to warn the on-comers of her situation. She did not hear Hana ask worriedly about her, or Jesse ask about their captive.

Several moments and more walking passed. She did not hear three more pairs of curious (or perhaps, concerned) footsteps follow the current four that were headed to the living quarters. Nor did she hear Hana lead all but Genji away from her door once they arrived and Athena permitted entry. Mercy could, however, feel when she was delicately placed into her bed by those warm, metallic hands. The cyborg wrapped her sheet loosely around her, and sighed softly once he studied her for a moment. He brushed hair out of her face, doing his very best to make sure she'd be comfortable when she awoke.

Groggily, she reached her hand up to grasp Genji's. "You've come so far... since you cursed at me for turning you into a cyborg..." she mumbled, eyes barely open.

He was quiet for a heartbeat, then gripped her hand back, firmly. He nodded. "So have you," he replied as he set her hand down on the bed, releasing it. "Now sleep, Doctor. You will be safe, here."

She barely formed the word "alright" before she dozed off again, comforted by his gesture of kindness. After a moment he quietly asked Athena not to wake her, unless it was dire. He then waited until he was sure she'd been asleep for a couple of minutes before taking his leave of her room, with a sigh and a shake of his head again.

"You are only human..."

\---

The smell of something delicious wafted its way into Mercy's room, waking her empty stomach into grumbling with displeasure. Her eyelids slid open halfway, and for several moments she lay in place. She felt entirely too comfortable to want to get out of bed, having gotten a few precious hours of dreamless sleep. Her stomach rumbled angrily, warning to ache soon if she didn't please it. She complied, sitting up slowly. Her tangled hair fell into her face as she rubbed the sleep out of one eye. "Nnn... Athena? Who's making dinner?"

" _It would appear that both the Shimada brothers and Torbjorn are cooking in the mess hall. Genji asked that I urge you to join them should you wake._ "

 _So that wasn't a dream._ She was extremely grateful for his help. Reaching to her nightstand, she found a stray hairband and pulled her blond locks into a loose ponytail. "Thank you, Athena," she said into the spacious room. Once her hair was up she got out of bed and stretched. _Feeling quite a bit better, now, actually... and it's only dinnertime._

" _Of course, Doctor._ "

Ignoring her urge to shower, Angela headed to the mess hall, eager to eat whatever was being prepared. The halls were mostly empty, though it appeared that she wasn't the only one with the idea. She passed a similarly-groggy Mei, who was just heading out of her own room. She offered an empathetic glance towards the tired scientist, who yawned and smiled sheepishly.

"Are you headed to dinner?" Mei asked, and Angela slowed her pace so that they could walk together. When the medic nodded, Mei smiled again. "I won't be the only one late, then."

"I hardly think that we have a schedule to keep here, nowadays," Angela replied with a similar grin. "Though, yes, walking in later than everyone else is sure to get some sort of response."

The pair walked in comfortable silence afterwards, neither having to ask why they'd been napping so late in the day. Mei would stay up late working on her old studies, and Angela... well, she imagined that apparently _everyone_ knew why she wasn't sleeping well. Was Hana over-exaggerating? Or were they really all able to tell that their medic was distraught? _Distraught is a good word for it all, I suppose,_ she thought, sending a pang of pain into her heart.

Indeed, when they'd gotten to the mess hall, they were greeted loudly by Reinhardt. Who in turn waved over Zarya, who drew the attention of Fareeha, who called to Genji. The cyborg popped his silver head around the corner of the kitchen door and seemed to brighten at the sight of Angela. He said something to someone else in the kitchen before making his way _rather quickly_ to her.

"Angela!" He called, stepping smoothly around Roadhog and over to her. "You are awake!" He sounded so pleased as he spoke. "Hanzo and I were making something, as I was hoping you'd sleep through the night, so you would have something tasty in the morning, but Torbjorn insisted on making his after-mission dinner. So we just sort of made enough in addition to the grumpy old dwarf's meal."

She couldn't help but cover her mouth and giggle at that. He really, _really_ sounded pleased about it. But out of focus, across the room, Jack sat with Ana, talking about something she couldn't catch. By the glances he kept throwing her way, she had a feeling she knew what the pair were talking about. She bit her lip in thought, mulling over the decision to confront Jack or let things simmer down. _Will they ever simmer down?_

"Ah... Doctor Ziegler?"

"Genji, that sounds wonderful, and I really do appreciate the thought," Angela turned her attention back to the man in front of her, offering a smile. "You really are one of the sweetest people I know. I'll be eating as well, just as soon as I have a word with Jack." She stepped past Genji, despite his word of protest, and made a path clear to her target. She only had one thing on her mind now, and that inner fire from earlier was beginning to burn once more.

76's voice made its way to her ears first. "--just saying that he... changed so much, right before the fall."

Ana's came next, quietly so. "Jack, you know we cannot make assumptions right now. The world has changed as we grow older. But people do not change when we get this old, deep down. He was one of us, once." She shot a glance towards the oncoming doctor, and he now saw Angela too. Within a second, she stood before them, on the opposite side of the table they sat at.

"Have you been talking about him all day, to everyone in the base?" Mercy asked quickly, crossing her arms. "You would think, with all the excitement from the mission, that everybody needed some time to unwind." Her tone was short, as though she were scolding a patient. Icy blue eyes bore into similar sky blue, and when he glanced towards Ana, she offered only a shrug and a nod towards Angela.

"I was hoping you'd unwind from the _excitement_ yourself," Jack accused, looking up at her again. _So he's going to take his ground now, is he?_

"You heard," Angela replied, not bothered in the slightest to hide her altercation earlier.

He groaned. "Everybody heard. He started screaming again in that cell not long after I left. Sounded like a madman." He stabbed his fork down into something he hadn't eaten, but his gaze didn't leave hers. "He _is_ a madman, and it's best if we get rid of him asap. You ought to just forget we even caught him, and move on."

"You are the one that keeps talking about him, Jack," she reminded him, feeling smug just in the slightest that she was right. She may have been thinking about Gabriel constantly, but she wasn't the one preaching.

That earned a grunt from 76, and he glanced down for a heartbeat before returning his sights on her. "But we know you'll vouch for him. You'll do everything in your power to bring back somebody that's not in there anymore. And then he'll stab you in the back, Angie. He did it once, and he'll do it again," he responded, words sounding more and more remorseful by the second.

Whether or not he'd meant for it to sting, it did. It stung _terribly_. The dark cloud in her mind, the one whispering about how she would never been enough for the man she'd loved, began to stew and threaten to encompass her resolve. She swallowed, doing her best not to let it get her. _Not right here. Not right now._

"Only time will tell. But we must give it time to be able to see if it will heal. We have him in custody, and neither he nor Widowmaker will be able to free themselves just yet," she finally said. She took note of Ana's posture stiffening slightly, and Jack's exhale of defeat. "I apologize for interrupting your conversation." And with that, she turned on her heel and walked back to a _definitely not eavesdropping_ Genji and Hana.

 _Hana._ Speaking of which, Hana did her best not to look guilty, but she seemed happy that Mercy was among them once more. "Ya kinda scared us there, earlier," she said once Angela sat across from them. "Jesse and I just saw Genji carrying you, and I was like ' _Oh no she finally croaked!_ ' and Jesse was like ' _She probably passed out from bein' so exhaaauuusted._ ' And he said it, just like that." She tried to put on her best impression of the cowboy, as though she'd practiced.

The girl's much lighter mood put Angela's churning emotions on pause, for now. She smiled gently, touched by Hana's attentive nature. "No, I ah..." She glanced towards Genji, who was chattering quietly with Zenyatta on his right. She needed an escape, something in place of the truth. She prayed he would get her hint and assist her.

He did not. He gave her a blank stare, _or at least she took it as a blank stare_ , and shook his head. _I thought you were supposed to have me covered._ She looked at Zenyatta instead, who shook his head, too. But Zenyatta was better with this kind of situation... _He probably wants me to be truthful._

Her eyes met with Hana's again, and she suddenly felt very bad for even trying to lie to the child. Hana was genuinely worried, even if she tried to pass it off as just some kind of mild affection. Angela sighed. "I'm sorry. I was very tired, and I had gone in to talk to... to Reaper." With the way Hana's eyes widened, she apparently hadn't heard about it. _She was with Jesse-- Nevermind, nevermind, don't think too hard on that._ "He and I exchanged some... words. And expressed... feelings," she confessed, her hand picking distractedly at her rolled-up sleeve. "I was very worn out, and Genji and Zenyatta were nearby."

Hana didn't respond immediately. She looked down, then to her right at the aforementioned pair. Then she looked back at Angela. "Look, uh... If you wanna talk about it, or, more like yell and cry about it, you can just get me, okay?" A smile played at her lips, and she rested her chin into her palm as her elbow rested on the table. "I got your back, Mom."

And Angela believed her. "The same goes for you, Hana." She could not help but offer her own smile. Afterwards, the conversations remained more light, and she did end up eating dinner. It was delicious, and she made sure to let Genji know, much to his delight. She did her best not to glance towards Jack for the rest of the evening, and once she returned to her quarters later, she once again felt exhaustion pulling her under. This time, however, getting into her bed alone made sleep more difficult to find.

 

Across the sprawling facility, in his cold cell, Reaper sat hunched over on the bed, trembling again. His breathing was in overdrive once more, his heart and familiar scars burning like fire. He growled in frustration and rage, his vocal chords burnt out from his outbursts earlier. Flexing his bound hands again, he looked towards the door, recalling earlier in the day. It had to be at least midnight now, the base silent as agents slept or did their own activities in their quarters. It was so damn quiet. He liked the quiet, he always had. But being in contact with _her_ again, even after all these years--

Another snarl bubbled up, and he tore his eyes away from the door. Poison, that's what she was. Plaguing his mind and body with something else, something that wasn't Hell-bent on vengeance. _That_ is why he existed: to haunt those that had wronged him and put him in this cursed body to begin with. As he thought such, he doubled over, coughing and dry-heaving for several minutes until he ended up on the floor, not for the first time that day.

In the next cell, Widowmaker could hear the poor fool hit the ground again, and she almost pitied him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let it be known that whatever happened at Swiss HQ isn't clear yet, so we're gonna try to stay vague about it. Next chapter will probably be a mission wooooo since Mercy got lots of her feels into words


	3. Chapter 3

In truth, Angela had been planning on visiting Reaper again, but she just wasn't sure when, and didn't get around to it the next day. It loomed in her mind as a bad idea, even when her foolish heart just yearned to hold Gabriel close again. Zenyatta had been right, she'd realized, in that Reaper had not told Angela that he never loved her. But she couldn't assume that he still did. It'd been years, and...

 _Mein Gott, I really did that to him,_ she thought to herself in the shower that day as she tried to wash away all the ache of shock and longing. _All our research somehow... It had to have been the explosion at the headquarters. It must have been... I'm surprised he was able to hold himself back from simply strangling me..._ But she always had been able to keep him from getting too violent on occassion, hadn't she? He'd never yelled at her, or harmed her, even when Blackwatch and Overwatch had been at each other's throats, behind the scenes.

She tried her best not to brood too much the rest of that day. There was another mission to prepare for, and she'd been assigned on it. She wasn't sure _why_ , as she was still so damn exhausted, and stealth missions hadn't really ever been her forte. But Genji was going as well, as far as she was told, so she wouldn't be left to her thoughts for too long.

The mission briefing wasn't too arduous either; Get in, get the intel they _hadn't_ been able to grab the first time, and get out. Running into Reaper _and_ Widowmaker had taken enough of the team's efforts. She'd been told earlier that getting Reaper into his cell had been difficult enough as it were. Winston had called for the strongest agents in the team just to be sure they could wrangle the angry stormcloud into the cell and allow Symmetra to get those cuffs on him. Angela had also been told that Reaper couldn't get closer to her because of some sort of light-involved barrier that reacted negatively with the cuff on him. _She_ could get into his space, but he could not get into hers. She really had been safe the whole time, even if she'd very much considered running into his arms and grasping onto him for dear life, never to let go.

After the agents had been assigned and briefed, Hana had gone out of her way to get Mercy to join in on a movie marathon, in the recreation theater room. The theater seats had been cleared out prior to Overwatch disbanding, but thanks to private funding they were currently receiving, the four rows consisted of beanbag chairs/couches, some of those strange C-shaped lounging chairs, and some plain leather couches. It was much more comforting than it would have previously seemed, at least to her. Joining them was also Jesse, Zarya, Mei, Zenyatta, Genji, Tracer, and Lucio. They watched three films, taking breaks in between of course, but Angela noticed the one movie the entire group had enjoyed was a much older film, _Pacific Rim_. The past's insight on future technology was very hit-or-miss, but the soundtrack, characters, and story seemed to be enjoyable for the whole crew.

She'd expected some shenanigans to have gone on during the movies, especially since Hana and Jesse sat on one couch, but surprisingly the pair kept their hands to themselves, Jesse merely having his arm draped across the back of the couch. She had noticed Zarya and Mei sharing gentle smiles between each other, which was refreshing as well. Angela herself sat between Lucio and Tracer, each in their own beanbags or lounging chairs, and they were entertaining to listen and talk to. But _goodness_ was she worried that Genji wouldn't be able to help himself in the back row. Every now and then she'd hear a quiet, almost silent sigh from either metallic voice and she made sure not to turn around in her seat to look at them.

All in all, as much as she enjoyed the domestic atmosphere, she wished she had someone to cuddle with, too.

As night fell, the creeping temptation to peek in on Reaper was beginning to cloud her judgement, but thankfully she had a mission to be prepped for. Packing away medical supplies and readying her suit took enough time to keep her from leaving the more comfortable wing of the base. Soon enough, she found herself slipping into bed, ready to rest up so she could leave in the morning.

Sleep found her in the form of terrible, vivid nightmares. Friends dying on the battlefield, only to be converted into black, mist-like forms of themselves. They all screamed at her, _"Why, Mercy? Why did you try to keep us here? Can't you just let us die?"_ Or she'd dream of Gabriel, as he was before the Fall. He'd bleed out in her arms, and she'd struggle to hold onto him until he disappeared. She'd feel strong arms wrap around her from behind, and a chin would rest on her shoulder. A gravelly voice would murmur into her ear, _"You killed him. I killed him."_ And she would grasp the strangest combination of dread and comfort, not struggling against those arms, and yet wishing she could pull away.

" _Angela... I love you._ "

Buzzing broke through her haze like ice water, and Mercy opened her eyes to see her alarm going off. The sun had not yet risen, she could tell from the small windows in her room. It felt as though she hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. Sitting up, she stretched and remembered that she'd set her alarm earlier than she needed to be awake for. She knew exactly why, and yet she refused to believe that she'd consciously done it.

Yet here she was, dressed in her Valkyrie suit and walking through the hallways before dawn. She kept her pace quick but light, as she was careful not to wake anyone else just yet. It seemed as though no-one else was awake. She counted herself lucky. _Perhaps no-one will--_

Right as she rounded one of the corners, she nearly bumped into Winston, who was looking down at a tablet as he padded his way through the building. Stepping around him just in time, she hoped he was too engrossed in his reading to recognize where she was headed.

"Morning, Mercy."

 _Verdammt._ "Good morning, Winston." She attempted to keep walking.

"Athena asked me if you'd check up on Reaper."

Angela froze in place and in thought for several heartbeats. "...Why is that?"

Winston had apparently stopped walking as well. "She says he's been acting ill, moreso than he usually would, being an over-destructive, angry smoke cloud."

His description would have made her giggle, if she didn't feel like she'd been caught doing something she shouldn't. Turning her head, she could see him looking towards her with mild interest, as though he honestly didn't really care that he'd caught her heading to the captivity wing. She cleared her throat. "It just so happens that I was indeed about to go... check on his status."

Winston hummed. "We can get information out of him, I'm sure, but that's not saying that I like having him on base. Use caution," he spoke as he began to leave, looking down at his tablet once more. She took that as an indication to leave, and could barely stop herself from sprinting the rest of the way to her destination.

Arriving at the door, Angela felt herself freeze up again as she had last time. Why was she here again? To try to reconnect with someone that hated her? To try to convince herself that Gabriel was in there? Or to prove to herself that Reaper really was not her past lover? Her eyes strayed to the small security screen next to the door, and she could see him sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall with his head down. _He's probably sleeping._

Movement on the screen caused her heart to stir, though. His head tilted up, and towards the right, where the security camera was hidden. He was looking at her. _He's looking at the camera. That's really creepy._

Steeling her nerves, she quietly spoke out into the silent hallway. "Athena, Winston mentioned that Reaper's been feeling ill?"

" _Affirmative, Doctor Ziegler. We are unaware of his ailment, and Winston suggested that we consult you._ "

She smiled faintly. Whether or not he wanted to see her, Angela would have to make sure their captives were doing alright. The thought brought a frown to her expression. "How is Widowmaker faring?"

" _Widowmaker's vitals have remained unchanged since she arrived to the Watchpoint._ "

 _I'll have to visit her too, soon... We're still unsure of what Talon did to her, especially after all these years..._ "Thank you, Athena. I'd like to see Reaper now," she replied, heartbeat picking up as she spoke the words.

" _Doctor, your vital signature suggests that you are exhausted, and your heartrate seems to skyrocket when you are in contact with Reaper. Should I send for another agent?_ "

The doctor chuckled delicately. "Nothing gets past you, Athena. No, I'll be fine. Reaper just... stirs up old memories."

Athena seemed to process the given information. " _I apologize, Doctor Ziegler. Opening cell door. You will be monitored for your safety._ "

The heels on her shoes clicked as Angela entered the cell, and she tried to carry herself with confidence. But seeing Reaper's bone-white mask turned in her direction made her stomach churn nervously. It was a mess of feelings that she was beginning to despise.

She expected him to sit up, to bristle at her presence, but she could tell in his posture that things were much worse than she'd originally expected. His shoulders weren't nearly as stiff as they'd been two days ago, and he was genuinely leaning on the wall as he was seated on the floor.

"...Reaper," she ventured.

" **Doctor,** " he replied.

"I've been made aware that your current situation has you feeling ill, correct?" _Stay professional, or you're never going to get back to the others before they leave for the mission._ She tried her best to keep her eyes off the mask, studying his body language. Or, perhaps, the lack thereof, because he simply hadn't bothered to get off of the ground.

" **The monkey told you.** " He didn't move, didn't lash out, didn't do anything except sit there with the slightest contempt in his voice.

"Athena and _Winston_ both told me, but I don't know exactly what they were talking about."

He chuckled, clenching and unclenching his fists. " **Then it doesn't matter, and you can leave me the Hell alo--** " He coughed, a sickening wet sound, several times. Angela was tempted to rush to his aid, but she constantly had to remind herself that she was supposed to be careful around him. Her heart ached for him again, as she was just feet away from being able to hold him and make him feel better. Regardless, once his fit had finished, he rested his head back against the wall. " **Fuck.** "

"Have-- Have you been coughing up anything?" she asked, glancing around the room. But she didn't see any signs that he'd gotten more sick than she'd seen just now. His response was merely a growl, and she returned her gaze to his mask. "Ga-- ...Reaper, I need to know if you are ill. Regardless of which sides we are fighting on, I need to help you."

" **Hah. I'm pretty sure most of the agents here would disagree with you, and they'd be more than willing to gut me and throw me into the ocean. Just like I'd love to do to all of them.** " He fought another cough off just then, even though he tried to hide it. " **Don't you have something better to do than pester me again? Thought I told you I don't want to see you. It's your fault I'm all kinds of fucked up.** "

Angela's eyes narrowed, though she felt a sting at his words. After a moment she grinned, crossing her arms. "So you're admitting that you are not feeling well."

The silence she recieved was all the confirmation she needed. Reaper turned his head away from her, looking at something far more interesting than the Valkyrie in front of him. " **I don't need your help. Fuck off.** "

"Language. If you are not going to cooperate, I can go fetch someone else. Reinhardt perhaps, as he could hold you down while I get a look at you. No, he's probably asleep..." She looked away, feigning being in deep thought. "Oh, I did see Winston just earlier, in the hallway. Preferrably I could get his assistance, with his--"

"I've been coughing up the souls of the damned."

"I am serious, Reaper, if you don't cooperate with me, I'll--!" His laughter cut her off, and for a moment Mercy felt a bit dumbfounded. It wasn't a sinister or threatening laugh, it was... familiar. Although taunting as well. His tone had changed too, losing some of the edge it regularly posessed.

"You'll what?"

She glanced away from his gaze again. "I'll keep coming to pester you."

"Your existence is pestering me enough," he shot back, and he finally stood from his postition. "Seriously, don't you have something actually better to do?"

"I am a medic, and I've come to check up on you, Reaper. Whether you like it or not." She stood firm on her reason for visiting, even if it was a lie. He could see right through it, too, and she knew it. She took a few steps closer, inching towards that barrier that separated them. "So I suggest you start talking."

The room went silent, eyes locking with the dark holes of a mask. He was so much taller than she, how could she have forgotten? All she could hear was her own gathering heartbeat and his soft breathing. It was interrupted though, with a choked gasp out of Reaper. He hacked once before doubling over, going into another heaving fit. In between the first few gasps for air, he groaned pitifully, and Angela's heart felt the familiar pangs of long-forgotten worry for this man.

She rushed forward just as he fell to his knees, a short cry escaping her as she reached for him. She placed an arm around his shoulders, boundaries thrown to the wind. "What can I do?"

" **Mask,** " he breathed out, edge returning to his voice as she touched him. Immediately she wrapped her fingers around the corner of his mask and yanked it out of his face. Thinking that he'd probably appreciate air, she pulled the hood back and away from his head. Gray skin was revealed once more, and he heaved again now that he could breathe. Some sort of inky black mass spewed from his mouth, to Angela's horror. It was not much, but it _definitely wasn't human_ to do that. It began to fade away soon after he did so, and she realized she'd have to get a sample of it sometime in order to diagnose him. Right now, though, he was beginning to catch more air between coughs. His breathing was quick but at least he'd seemed to get the fit out of his system for the most part. She continued to rub his back, offering as much support as she possibly could.

She found herself studying his fully-revealed face again. Structure-wise, it was the same as Reyes had always been. Even though his eyes had changed colors, they held the same familiarity. His hair was much longer and wavier than she'd realized, however, as part of it hung over the opposite side of his face. He even had the same beard he'd always had. He was... _Honestly, he's more similar to how he used to be than I thought he would be._

Reaper seemed to catch her staring, locking on to her eyes out of the corner of his. His breathing was beginning to slow, and he groaned softly again. Words formed on her tongue, but she felt it best to remain silent as she delicately rubbed his back. His posture began to stiffen, as though he remembered he was supposed to hate her and _constantly_ be angry. But just as she imagined he would pull away from her, his shoulders semi-relaxed again. He chuckled bitterly, out of nowhere.

"Here you are again. Thinking you can come to the rescue when shit's hitting the fan."

"You cannot expect me to believe that you wanted me to watch you throw up into your mask," she replied softly. Being near him was a bit scary, sure, but at the same time, a part of her told her never to stop touching him. "You'd have been much more irritable if I allowed that to happen."

"Done it before."

"And?"

"...It was nasty as fuck," he mumbled, refusing to look at her. "Don't ask Widowmaker."

Before she could help it, a giggle bubbled up in her chest and she covered her mouth with her free hand. He grunted in response, but made no move to force her away or tell her to stop.

"I am sorry, I just--" She snorted a little, and calmed her laughing down quickly. "I was not expecting that." A smile still played on her lips, lightly. Her eyes traveled to Reaper's face again, studying it. The gash from the other day was gone, but another, smaller wound was residing on his jaw. "Did you injure yourself in here?"

He remained silent for several seconds, leading her to believe that he had in fact harmed himself. When she was about to confront him, he reached over to where his mask had fallen. "No. My skin does that." He picked it up, and held it in his hands for a moment, just staring down into the owlish carving with a scowl.

"...Reaper--"

He grunted, pulling his hood over his head again and replacing his mask where it belonged. "You need to leave."

 _Ah._ Mercy reluctantly pulled her gloved arm away from him, trying to guard her heart from taking offense at his words. "Does this happen often?"

"Yes." He was beginning to stand, so she took the hint and stood up as well. She offered to help, but he had no need for it. Once they had both straightened up, she couldn't help but stare up at him. He wasn't shoving her away, or growling threats, or refusing help.

"How long has it been since..." She knew she was pushing it, but questions were forming themselves before she could process them. He seemed so vulnerable right now, after this strange fit of sickness. Perhaps if she asked questions now, she would really get answers. "How long has it been since you've let someone else touch you?"

A dangerous growl emitted from him, and she'd known she'd picked at the wrong part of him. " **Probably eight years.** "

"Reyes, I didn't mean--"

" **Get out.** "

Still she stared up at him, unwilling to relent for whatever reason. _You're asking for him to lose his patience._ He began growling again, and she found herself taking a couple of steps away from his larger frame. "I won't let you bully me when you've been needing help--"

" ** _Ziegler._** "

Her back had hit the cold metal of the wall, and she found herself nearly face-to-face with Reaper. His hands were planted firmly on the wall above her head. " **You need to keep your mouth _shut_. You're barking up the wrong tree, and you've got better shit to do than try to get under my skin.** " He glanced towards the door, then back to her again. " **I could do a lot of things to you right now, and you're _sassing_ me as if I'm gonna take it.** "

Truthfully, her heart had started up again like it was about to rocket off to the moon. All it seemed to care about was the fact that this person in front of her had been Gabe, past or present. And he was standing _inches_ away from her. She probably looked like a deer in the headlights, and her mind was all over the place. _He's really scary like this. He's right in front of me. I can hear him breathing. What does he look like right now under the mask? What do his hands look like?_

Reaper seemed to realize why she'd frozen up, and he hissed as he stepped away from her. " **How long has it been since you've let someone else touch _you?_** " He mocked, though he seemed fairly ruffled at her reaction. " **Get the Hell out of here, before Shimada shows up again.** "

 _Genji._ He was going on the mission too! Angela stuttered some sort of response that sounded like "D-Don't think you'll be getting out of this!" before running to the door and out of the cell in a hurry.

\---

The dropship ride was usually fairly quiet as the agents rode to the same remote Talon base that they'd infiltrated two days ago. It was somewhere north, took several hours of flying, and was _very_ cold. _Much colder than Gibraltar, anyway._

There was a good chance that more Talon agents had come back for valuables or to destroy the compromised area, but when the dropship had been landing, Angela noted that everything seemed as quiet as could be. Genji, however, warned that there were more vehicles around the area than there had been during the mission last time. The other agents agreed that Talon operatives had definitely returned to the base.

Once the ship had landed quietly and had its cloaking enabled, the team begun their short journey to their plan of attack. The agents joining Mercy and Genji were Hanzo and Symmetra. The mission was to be stealthy, which was why Angela was confused as to being chosen over Zenyatta. The monk certainly would have made less noise than she would have, and he probably would have been more useful with his orbs. As she'd wondered this prior, however, Genji had noted that if they ran into Talon, they'd run into a _lot_ of them, and Mercy's staff could patch wounds faster than Zenyatta's orbs.

(Genji had apologized profusely to Zenyatta, saying _"No, Sensei, I'm not saying that your orbs are useless!"_ when the Omnic teased him and feigned feeling hurt.)

Surrounding the perimeter were few guards, so it wouldn't be difficult for the four to make their way in. Honestly, though, Angela wished that they'd brought more members along for the mission, but having broken in the first time meant that a full-front assault would be much more difficult the second time. _Not to mention the fact that they'd outnumber us no matter what..._

They hadn't even needed to take any guards out to be able to sneak into the building. A small team spelled much more for success. Despite her reluctance, Angela agreed that a bigger team would have been much harder to move around, though Tracer and Zarya remained in the dropship should they need backup.

Once they'd gotten into the door, Mercy took deep breaths to try to steel her nerves. She was _not_ a stealthy operative back in her Overwatch days; She may have made her Valkyrie suit to fly to wounded soldiers, but that was in the thick of battle, when she had assured she'd have the proper cover. Every noise made her tense, every dark corner made her skin crawl, and every unfamiliar voice made her heart race. It was only because Genji and Hanzo were leading the team through corridors now that she did not panic entirely.

"We should be close to the server room," Genji's voice came barely at a whisper, thanks to his cybernetic voicebox as they slipped behind more giant crates in their path. They'd been slinking down several hallways at this point, ducking behind any cover that they might find. There were plenty of boxes and crates along the way, Angela noted, and they'd only truly seen a handful of Talon operatives perusing the halls. _This must be a lesser-used wing, for a lot of storage,_ she mused. She thanked her stars that they'd found a door outside so close to their destination.

Sure enough, Genji soon delicately halted them with a motion of his hand, and peered around a corner. She waited for a few tense seconds, afraid he'd get his head blown clear off. But instead, he motioned with his hand for the others to follow, and they made it around the corner to an impressive sliding door...

...that had been busted clean open.

_This is... This is odd. The footage that we were briefed on--_

"They have not repaired the damage to this room," Genji spoke oh-so-quietly again. "Symmetra, Hanzo, watch the door. Angela," he looked back towards her as he spoke, "you are coming with me."

The grip on her staff tightened and Mercy nodded, stepping past the other two and next to Genji. "Good thinking. We would not want to be trapped in here." He nodded in agreement, and the pair stepped through the broken door. Inside the room resided many server towers that were tall as Angela's shoulders. A handful of them appeared to be damaged by stray bullets (or shotgun shells, apparently), but most remained intact. However, she had noticed what Genji hadn't mentioned just yet: there was blood smattered on the shiny surfaces of several of the towers. The floor had been cleaned, seemingly, but someone had forgotten to wipe down everything else.

As they stepped through the eerily silent room, she tried to catch Genji's gaze, but he was avoiding her eyes. _It's not like I don't know what it looks like when he does that._ Angela cleared her throat softly. "Who could have--"

"It was Reaper," Genji replied before she'd finished, finally risking a glance back towards her. "You know as well as I do. But we are unsure why." He seemed so reluctant to talk about it, but she couldn't place why. They were soon approaching another door at the end of the large room, and this one had also been blown open. She looked at him for an explanation, and thankfully, he spoke up. "That room, the control room I believe, is where we found Reaper and Widowmaker. Reaper was screaming at her, and she was as calm as she always is... And then we burst in. We needed in the room, but they were in the way, of course, so we decided to take them if we could."

_Reaper came in here, killed some of his own co-operatives, met with Widowmaker... Why?_

Genji motioned with his head towards the smaller room, and the two peered in. With the coast clear, they were inside and studying the area. "This computer should have what we need," he spoke once he'd glanced over the large computer at one end of the room. There were several screens hooked up to the wall as well, all displaying identical simple screensavers. Once he stepped in front of it, the screens stopped their idling and prompted Genji for a password.

"Winston said we should just have to hook this up to the computer, right?" Angela asked, pulling a small device from one of her suit's small pouches.

The cyborg nodded and got to work with the device she'd handed him. It was tapped onto the computer's main tower, and it latched on with tiny sharp legs. The screens glitched out for several seconds, battling over antivirus software and trying to prevent the hack, but in the end Winston's program won, and the screens displayed different bouts of information. "This thing should be downloading what we need, but let's see..." He glanced back at Mercy, and she could have sworn he was grinning under that mask. "Let us see what our captives were up to before we arrived, yeah?"

With a grunt she agreed, but not before rolling her eyes at his action. He began to type away at the holo-keyboard that had appeared before him, and her mind began to wonder as she studied the rest of the room. Stray bullet holes remained in the walls and a few office cabinets, but the computer they were hacking seemed to be the only one in the room. _Why did he go on a rage like that? What could have possessed him to attack his own co-workers? What about Widowmaker? Did she make him angry, or was she sent to stop his violent fit?_ She sighed and glanced back to Genji, who soon seemed to find what he was searching for.

"Here," he tapped the screen, blowing the video image to full-screen on the biggest monitor, "is what I believe we're looking for."


End file.
